


Movie Night

by Haywire



Category: Veronica Mars (TV)
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Slow Build, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-10
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2021-01-26 14:03:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21375319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haywire/pseuds/Haywire
Summary: Veronica has relocated to Austin, TX to spend more time with Mac, who's setting up shop there. Will their friendship evolve into something more, much like their work relationship?
Relationships: Cindy "Mac" Mackenzie/Veronica Mars
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14
Collections: Femslash Exchange 2019





	Movie Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [marginalia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marginalia/gifts).

> For marginalia. I hope you enjoy it!

It started out as a way to escape Neptune.

Mac had returned from her time in Istanbul, but she didn’t return to California. Instead, she’d set up shop in Austin, Texas, where the combination of a booming tech industry and a healthy distance from her hometown were too good to pass up.

Veronica came to visit, first to seek out technological help with a case she’d been working on, and then just for fun. It evolved into a partnership of sorts, where Mac would help her out with her cases on the weekends and after work, and Veronica ended up spending more and more time in Austin.

Keith was a huge proponent of this, having wanted his daughter to escape Neptune and make something of herself without being chained to her past, or to him. So she’d taken the leap and moved in with Mac, at least for as long as it’d take to get a place of her own.

One warm summer night after finishing their investigation on a missing persons case - spoiler: the kid had faked his own kidnapping for both the attention and the ransom money - Veronica suggested they take in dinner and a movie to celebrate. The Alamo Drafthouse checked both of those boxes, and happened to be one of their favourite spots, so that’s where they went.

“And that’s why they consider that a classic,” Veronica said, holding the door open for Mac to exit ahead of her. “Man, I know it’s a cliche, but it really does get better every time I see it.”

“It was all right, yeah.” Mac shrugged her shoulders and smirked as she exited the building. She knew Veronica realized she was being baited, and she also knew she’d rise to the occasion.

“I seriously can’t believe you’ve never seen Dazed and Confused before tonight.” Veronica followed her out and shook her head. “And that you only rated it one all right even after you’ve just finished watching it.”

“Okay, then I think it’s all right, all right, all right. Or should I give it five of them?” she replied.

“Are you kidding? That’d just be too much. Three is perfect.” Veronica said with a laugh. “For real though, you’ve lived in Texas how long now? Next thing you’ll tell me you’ve never eaten at Whataburger or Top Notch.”

“Whataburger, yes. Top Notch, that’s a negative,” Mac answered.

“Shut up,” Veronica exclaimed, reaching out and putting a hand on Mac’s shoulder, squeezing it gently. “Dude, even I’ve eaten there on one of my earlier visits, and you haven’t yet?” She took out her phone and started typing furiously.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Mac fought off the blush she felt rising in her cheeks, then frowned and tried to glance over her shoulder at whatever she was doing. “We just had supper while we watched the movie, are you ordering more food?”

“You’ll thank me for it, I promise you.” She finished typing and then started walking again, heading for her car. “Come on, we have to beat the Grubhub guy home or else this has all been in vain.”

-

Once they got back to their apartment, Mac started to set up another movie to watch in their living room while Veronica dealt with the delivery guy and set up their post-supper supper.

She’d only ordered a burger for each of them and an order of fries to share, along with milkshakes of course, but that was still a pretty substantial amount of food. Once she paid for everything she brought the food out and set it before them, then raised an eyebrow at the Netflix logo on the tv.

“What’s this now?”

“Now it’s my turn to pick out a classic,” Mac said, patting the space next to her on the couch.

Veronica took a seat and a handful of fries in the same motion. “I’m waiting with bated breath here. Don’t leave me hangin’.”

Mac hit a button on the remote and her selected movie started to play. The opening credits for The Net, starting Sandra Bullock, started to scroll across the screen. “Ta da.”

“I like where your head’s at, a film starring another Southern belle. And about computers, very on brand for you too, but a classic? Ehhh.” Veronica held a hand out and waved it back and forth.

“Shhh, just sit back and watch.”

They both did just that, while making a valiant attempt to vanquish the humongous burgers. Veronica was more successful than Mac, but the other woman acknowledged the excellent quality of the food and promised to heat it up and finish it later.

Everything went fine until the scene where Dennis Miller, playing Sandra Bullock’s character’s former love interest, was murdered by the shadowy people pursuing her.

Veronica reached out and took the remote, hitting the pause button and getting to her feet. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and turned away, heading for the kitchen.

“Hey, you want anything? I have to use the washroom, I’ll be right back,” she said, not looking back at Mac.

It took her a second to realize what was wrong before Mac said anything. “Oh… oh crap. I’m sorry, Veronica, I didn’t mean to…” She trailed off as the sound of the bathroom door shutting interrupted her.

When Veronica came back out the television was turned off and Mac remained where she’d left her on the couch.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get upset. I should just go to bed I think.”

“No, it’s okay, I’m sorry that I didn’t think and made such a stupid mistake,” Mac pleaded, patting the couch once again. “Don’t go to bed, not yet at least, please.”

After a moment’s hesitation Veronica moved over and took her spot next to Mac, pulling her legs up and curling into the couch. “It’s just… it’s been hard, that’s all.”

Mac leaned in and put an arm around her, pulling the blanket she’d been wearing across her legs over them both. “I can only imagine. I know we’ve never talked about it and I would never bring it up unless you wanted to talk about it, but know that you can if you want.”

Veronica sniffled and nodded, a gesture Mac felt more than saw due to the blanket being pulled up. “I didn’t want to bother you with it either. And I should be over it, or at least able to deal with it.” It’d been over a year since the bombing that robbed her of her newlywed husband, but in many ways the wound was still as fresh as it’d been that fateful day.

“You’d never bother me, Veronica. And it’s perfectly understandable that you’d still be struggling to deal with something like that. Honestly, I’d be more surprised if you were completely over it.” Mac smoothed a hand over Veronica’s back, rubbing it gently back and forth to comfort her friend.

“It’s part of the reason why I’m here.” Veronica sat up a little, moving in closer to Mac and leaning a head on her shoulder. “I mean, you’re the main reason, of course, but to get out of Neptune… I want to be there for Dad, but there’s nothing else there for me now.”

“I can relate.” Mac had no desire to go back to her hometown either, and hadn’t been back for some time now. “I suppose Wallace is still there, but he’s got his new family and everything. Which I don’t begrudge him, but things are…” She paused, searching for the right words.

“Different,” added Veronica. “And I agree, I’m happy he has a kid and a wife, and that he’s happy, but it’s not the same dynamic any more.” Things had changed with her father too, but she wasn’t about to try and unpack that along with everything else just now.

“Yeah.” Mac looked down at Veronica and bit her lip, pausing to consider whether she should broach the topic on her mind. “I always wondered why you went back, actually. Aside from your dad, of course, that much is obvious, but I mean… you got out, Veronica. You were as out as you could get, in New York City, with a new partner, a new job, and… yeah.”

After a few seconds of awkward silence, it was Mac’s turn to apologize.

“I’m sorry, Veronica, I shouldn’t have -”

“No, it’s okay,” Veronica said, stopping her. “You’re not wrong, not at all. I did get out, and I did have a life outside of Neptune. Going back was hard, and I didn’t need to, but I did. And now, well.” She chuckled, looking around the apartment she shared with Mac. “Now I’m out again, I guess.”

“For now?” tested Mac.

“I have no intentions of moving back, but then again I didn’t have any before either,” Veronica mused. “A lot of it depends on my Dad, but he’s doing fine and is actually happier that I’m gone, truth be told.” She still saw him fairly often, as he liked to travel, but she hadn’t gone back since her move to Austin.

“Well, you know you’re welcome here as long as you want to stay here,” Mac reminded her.

“I know, thanks, Mac.” Veronica looked up and smiled at her roommate. “I honestly don’t know where I’d be without you.”

“I know where, and I’m just glad you’re not there,” Mac said with a grin. “And you’ve been just as much of a help to me.” Rent in Austin wasn’t cheap, and their work together had helped them both out financially, not to mention the whole ‘being lonely in a new city’ situation Mac had been in before Veronica’s arrival.

“I’m glad, then. And I’m not going anywhere,” Veronica confirmed. “Not now, or ever, if I can help it.”

“Well, you do have to go to bed at some point,” Mac pointed out and chuckled.

“We both do, yeah,” said Veronica. She looked up at Mac, tilting her head up from where it rested on her shoulder.

Mac made a snap decision and leaned down, closing her eyes as she pressed her lips against Veronica’s. It was only for a handful of seconds, but it felt much longer to her. She was the first to pull back, but Veronica didn’t make any effort to pull away.

“Was… was that too forward?” Mac asked once she’d pulled her head back up.

“No, it was what I expected.” Veronica grinned at the look on Mac’s face at that. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I didn’t want it, but I was wondering if you had feelings for me and I wanted to find out. And, as a wise person once said earlier tonight, ta da.”

Mac laughed and nudged Veronica’s head with her shoulder. “Don’t scare me like that. I was afraid that maybe I’d gone too far there.”

“You haven’t, promise.” Veronica’s smile faltered a little. “I mean, I am still in a weird place, and I know that, but I don’t want to be in this place forever. I like you, Mac. A lot. But it’s going to take me time to figure things out, I just needed to know that you were leaning in that same direction or not.”

“That’s fair,” Mac conceded. “And I am. Kinda hard, if I’m being honest, but I respect what you’re saying.” She’d had feelings for Veronica for a while now, but it had always been too awkward to bring up. She was glad that Veronica had done the heavy lifting for them both on that one, and had opened the door for her to walk through.

“Good. Great, even,” said Veronica.

“Don’t you mean… all right, all right, all right?” Mac teased.

Veronica hit her underneath the blanket, thought not very hard. She followed it up by leaning up and initiating another kiss, tilting her head and raising one hand to brush Mac’s cheek as she did so. When she pulled back she let her hand linger, brushing the stray strands around Mac’s ear as she smiled up at her.

“See? I told you that you were going to love that movie.”

“You’re right, I do love it,” Mac replied, leaning her forehead down to rest against Veronica’s. They stayed cuddled up on the couch for the rest of the night. The rest of the city, the world, even, could wait for just another while longer.


End file.
